Virginia Courtauld

Virginia Peirano was born Vergilia Rosa Vester^α on 7 January 1885 in Brăila, to a Hungarian mother, Rosa Balint Peirano (1860–1940), and an Italian father, Riccardo Peirano (1854–1930).^{[1][2][3][4][5]} Peirano's father was a shipping merchant, whose family left Genoa in the late nineteenth century and established a grain-exporting business in the Romanian port city of Brăila.^[6][4]

Peirano had two older brothers, Riccardo Jr. "Richard" Peirano (1880–c.1918–c.1923) and Enrico "Henry" Peirano (1881–).^[5][7][8] Peirano's parents married on the 30 November 1886.^[5]

Peirano's childhood was spent in London, where she was educated at convent school.^[4][9]

In December 1908, Riccardo Peirano dissolved his partnership in the family business "Peirano & Co.," leaving control of the company to his eldest son Richard Peirano and to George Nicholas Gologan of the Romanian Consulate.^[10][11] In either late 1909 or early 1910, Peirano relocated with her parents to Santa Margherita, Liguria .^[12][13] In May 1910, the Peirano family rented a villa within the private park of the then Villa Spinola, owned by the Marquis Ugo Spinola (1853–1925) and Solferina Serra Spinola (1859–1944).^[12][13]

In 1910, Peirano met the Marchese Paolo Spinola (1880–1969), the Spinola's third and youngest son and a member of the Luccoli branch of the House of Spinola.^[12][14][13] Within months of knowing each other, Peirano and Spinola broke with social convention and traveled together to Paris and London.^[12] On the 24 November 1910, Peirano and Spinola were married at the Cathedral of Saint Lawrence in Genoa.^[12][4] Honeymooning in the Khedivate of Egypt, the couple continued to travel extensively throughout their marriage.^[12]

Peirano and Spinola lived between London and the "villino Pagana n.8" on the Villa Spinola estate.^[13] In 1913, Ugo and Solferina Spinola commissioned the "neova villa" (Later known as the Villa del Trattato [it]) to be built for the couple on the Villa Spinola Estate.^[15][13] Styled after the Villa Serra di Comago, the Villa del Trattato was completed in 1915 however, Peirano and Spinola never lived in the property. ^[15][13] Initially passionate, Peirano's and Spinola's marriage was strained by class and cultural differences which saw Peirano struggle to fit in with the conservative Spinola family.^[16][17] In 1919, Peirano met Stephen Courtauld in Courmayeur whilst on a skiing holiday with Spinola, and formed a romantic relationship.^[4][13]

Peirano and Luccoli separated in either the spring or summer of 1920, and finalised their divorce in Fiume (present-day Rijeka, Croatia) in 1923.^{[9][4][14][13]} Peirano married Stephen Courtauld in Fiume soon after, whilst Spinola formed a long term relationship with the actress Hydée Urbani.^{[9][18][14][15]}

As a wedding present, Stephen Courtauld gifted Peirano a pet ring-tailed lemur named Mah-Jongg, who lived and traveled with the couple for the next 15 years.^[4]

In 1933, the couple acquired a 99-year-lease on Eltham Palace, and completed an Art Deco renovation.^[19] Following a bombing on Eltham Palace in 1944, the Courtauld's gave up their lease and moved to Scotland.^[20]

In 1951, the Courtauld's moved to Southern Rhodesia (present-day Zimbabwe), and commissioned the building of the La Rochelle country estate.^[21] The Courtaulds supported non-racialism, were personal friends of Hastings Banda and advocated for Rhodesian black rule.^[22][23] Following Stephen Courtauld death in 1967, Peirano reportedly began financially supporting members of the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army crossing the Mozambique–Zimbabwe border.^[22][23]

Peirano left Zimbabwe in 1970, and lived with family in St Lawrence, Jersey.^[24]

The 2017 book Virginia, un mondo perduto. Scene da un matrimonio Belle Epoque di casa Spinola (English: Virginia, a Lost World. Scenes from a Belle Epoque Marriage at Casa Spinola) was edited by Galleria nazionale di palazzo Spinola [it].^[17][25] In 2018, Peirano was honoured at the Rose Festival in Busalla (Italian: Festa delle Rose di Busalla).^[26]

The 2019 historical fiction book The Dragon Lady is based on Peirano's life.^[27]

The Indonesian orchid Vanda lombokensis 'Virginia Courtauld' is named after Peirano.^[28][29]

^α It is unclear why Peirano was given the surname Vester.^[30]

• Treaty of Rapallo, signed at Villa del Trattato